Guardian Care Center welcomes volunteers

PENDLETON – April is Child Abuse Awareness Month and the Guardian Care Center holds a vital position in dealing gently with helping victims of child abuse tell their heartbreaking stories.

Most of those cases are prosecuted by Umatilla County Chief Deputy District Attorney Jaclyn Jenkins and she says she cannot express how important the center is as she carries out her duties.

“What Guardian Care Center does is really give the child an opportunity to tell their story which then allows me to share that story with a jury,” she said. “If Guardian Care Center didn’t do that I don’t now how I would do my job.”

Guardian Care Center sustains its services by grants, fundraising projects, private donations, and earmarked funding. No family is denied services based on inability to pay.

The services it provides include forensic interviews, child forensic interviews stemming from allegations of child abuse, medical evaluations, mental health referrals and treatment through area professionals, and coordination of victim services.

The center has a list of items of which they are always in need. Those include bottled water, individually wrapped snacks, new stuffed animals, new quilts and fleece blankets for children and teens, and postage stamps. The center also welcomes donations and has other volunteer possibilities. For more information go to Donate & Support – Guardian Care Center.

Guardian Care Center urges people to be heroes and spot signs of child abuse. They are unexplained injuries, changes in behavior, changes in school performance and attendance, returning to earlier behaviors, fear of going home, changes in eating, changes in sleeping, a lack of personal care or hygiene, risk-taking behaviors, and inappropriate sexual behaviors. The national Child Abuse Hotline is 855-503-7233.

Graphic from Guardian Care Center Facebook

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Elkhorn Media Group